Young Leaders for Parents

When your Explorer-aged child volunteers as a Young Leader with a younger section — Squirrels, Beavers, Cubs or Scouts — they get their own Scoutworks login so they can see their helping rota, track their own badges, and plan around the section they support. Even with their own login, a few things still come back to you as the parent. This article walks through what your child can do on their own, what still needs you, and where to find everything in your parent portal.

What a Young Leader can do on their own#

A Young Leader's login is a deliberately narrower version of an adult leader's. Their sidebar shows: Dashboard, Events, Badges and Equipment. From there, they can:

• See the events for the section they help with.
• RSVP to those events themselves — as long as the event is free.
• Track their own badge progress and submit evidence.
• See kit lists and event details so they can plan their kit.

What they can't see:

• The member list for the section they help with.
• Anyone's medical or contact information.
• Finance, email, group settings, or anything to do with other families.

When you still need to step in#

Your child can RSVP themselves to free events — a regular Cub night, an indoor activity at the hut, a community event with no cost.

For any event that needs payment — a camp fee, a trip cost, a paid activity — the RSVP comes to you instead. Your child will see the event in their portal, but the Yes / No response sits in your parent portal under My Children's Events, alongside the RSVPs for any of your other children.

This split is deliberate. Agreeing to pay for something on your child's behalf is your decision, not theirs, so Scoutworks routes those RSVPs to the person with the bank account. It also means the financial side stays in one place — you'll see the cost, the deadline, and the payment request all together.

Seeing both sections, explained#

Most Young Leaders are also still members of their Explorer section — they help out with Beavers or Cubs on one night, and go to their own Explorer night on another. That means there are two sections in their life, and both show up in the parent portal:

• The section they help with as a Young Leader (for example, Wednesday Cubs).
• Their own Explorer section (for example, Friday Explorers).

On your My Children's Events page, events from both sections appear under your child's name. You'll see a Wednesday Cub camp and a Friday Explorer hike side by side, sorted by date.

The same applies to payments — a paid event from either section creates a payment request in your My Finances page, with the section clearly labelled so you know which activity it relates to.

What leaders see#

The leaders running the section your child helps with see your Young Leader as part of their team for that night. They can:

• Mark your child as attending or not on the helping rota.
• See your child's badge progress (the badges they're working on as a Young Leader).
• Contact you, the parent, for anything that needs a payment or a parental decision.

They cannot see your other children's information, your Direct Debit details, or anything about your family beyond what they'd see for any volunteer helper.

A note on safeguarding#

A Young Leader login is built so your child gets the benefit of helping out — a clear rota, recognition for their volunteering, badges to work towards — without taking on adult responsibilities they shouldn't carry. They don't see other families' details, they don't handle money, and they don't get notifications meant for parents. Where a decision involves cost or consent, Scoutworks routes it to you.

If you're ever unsure whether something is meant for your child or for you, the rule of thumb is:

• It mentions money or consent → it's for you.
• It's about the rota, kit, or their own badges → it's for them.

What's next#

• Getting Started as a Parent — overview of the parent portal and dashboard.
• RSVPs and Events for Parents — how RSVPs and event details work in your portal.
• Payments and Direct Debit for Parents — approving payments for paid events.